It's Police Vs. Police On Gun Purchase Bill

September 08, 1988|by SCOTT J. HIGHAM, The Morning Call

As Congress prepares to vote on a seven-day waiting period for new handgun purchases, two groups of police officials deeply divided over the proposal converged on Capitol Hill yesterday to wage an unusual public relations battle.

It was a fight between the nation's largest law enforcement groups and policemen sympathetic to the National Rifle Association for the more than 30 undecided House votes on the so-called Brady amendment.

"They're renegades who've prostituted themselves by pandering to the NRA," said Jerald Vaughn, executive director of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

The public relations tug of war began yesterday morning when nearly 200 police officials crowded into a Washington police meeting room. They heard a number of high-ranking law enforcement officers argue that the Brady amendment could prevent convicted criminals and the mentally ill from obtaining handguns.

The meeting was sponsored by the Law Enforcement Steering Committee, an umbrella organization of 11 leading police groups, which has been trying to beat the formidable NRA at the Capitol Hill lobbying game.

"This is a law enforcement issue. Congress should listen to us, not the NRA," said Dewey Stokes, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, which backs the waiting period.

Stokes and other officials said the amendment, named after White House press secretary James Brady, who was shot along with President Reagan, could prevent criminals and the mentally ill from buying handguns. He said it would also provide a "cooling off" period to prevent crimes of passion.

The amendment, part of the Omnibus Drug Bill, is expected to come to the House floor either today or tomorrow, and congressional aides said they expect a close vote. The amendment would establish a national waiting period for all new handgun purchases while giving police officials the option of running background checks on applicants.

Sarah Brady, who has become a leading handgun control advocate since her husband was shot in 1981, received a standing ovation from the police officials. "I admire each and every one of you for what you do, how you put your life on the line to protect us," she said. "I know this Congress will listen to you becauseyou are the professionals, not the NRA."

As the police officials headed toward the Capitol to lobby lawmakers, the NRA was holding its own news conference.

"This bill is not going to help us each day out on the road or on the street," Pennsylvania state police Trooper Bill Krulac said during the NRA- organized news conference.

Standing before nearly 100 police officials opposed to the waiting period, Krulac said the proposal would not prevent criminals from buying handguns on the black market. Moreover, he and other officials said, the provision would force departments to pull policemen from the beat to conduct time-consuming background checks.

Police officials attending the NRA-sponsored news conference said lawmakers and the steering committee are missing the point. They said attention should be focused on imposing stiffer penalties on those possessing and using illegal guns.

The waiting period debate, simmering for months between the NRA and the steering committee, appeared to boil over yesterday with the fate of the proposal hours away. The two sides accused each other of failing to represent rank-and-file police officers, and each said the other was being misled by special interests.

Krulac, for instance, suggested that the most vociferous backers of the proposal are appointed or elected police officials who are using the waiting period for political cover. He and others opposed to the measure said the chiefs are "out of touch" with the rank and file.

Vaughn responded by saying that high-ranking police officials "are not created from a ball of Silly Putty" and questioned whether the police officers opposing the measure are law enforcement officers or NRA impostors.

"Our lives are on the line. We're the ones being gunned down," said Harry Cunningham, a Philadelphiadetective who supports the waiting period. "The issue is pretty damn clear. We want law enforcement to be able to do its job."

Cunningham and other police officials favoring the proposal say waiting periods have prevented criminals from buying handguns in states such as New Jersey. Twenty-two states have adopted waiting periods for handgun purchases, including Pennsylvania, where a 48-hour wait is required.

Ritter said through an aide yesterday that he is "truly undecided." Kostmayer and Yatron did not return telephone messages.

Cunningham said a team of police officers plans to visit each member of the Pennsylvania delegation by the end of today to "put them on the spot" and warn them that the waiting period could become an issue in their campaigns.

"They've been treating us like mushrooms, keeping us in the dark and feeding us crap," said Cunningham.